Have Mercy: A Loveswept Contemporary Erotic Romance by Shelley Ann Clark

Author:Shelley Ann Clark [Clark, Shelley Ann]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780553390490
Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
Published: 2014-07-01T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Nine

The first Atlanta show was a triumph.

They sold out the space in the Alley, and the crowd was fantastic. Jed followed Emme around all night like a lost puppy, though Greg didn’t seem so impressed by her interview earlier in the day.

The after-party was held in their hotel bar, which at least had the advantage of being nicer than the bars they played in. Apparently the “Hotel M experience” included a lounge that served seventeen-dollar martinis and looked like it had been decorated by Belle Watling’s interior designer. Everything from the red-velvet upholstered banquettes to the gold-flocked wallpaper to the dim lighting screamed antebellum brothel to Emme.

She loved it.

She didn’t, however, love watching every woman at the party try to flirt with Tom. She couldn’t blame them; he’d played brilliantly, and watching him onstage would have been enough to set her libido aflame even if she hadn’t known just what he could do in a bed. Or on a floor. Or on his knees. She also couldn’t walk over to him, slide her hand over the nape of his neck, and pull him down to kiss her hard and slow in front of the entire room. No matter how badly she wanted to publicly stake her territory, she would be on her good behavior. Especially with Jed and Greg right there in the bar.

Emme wound her way through the crowd. She stopped to greet a couple of fans, chatted for a while with an aspiring singer, and fended off the advances of three different guys wearing far too much cheap cologne.

Somehow, without consciously planning to, she found herself sliding into a booth next to Tom, who was nursing a club soda with lime and talking to a very pretty and very young brunette.

“No, I can’t say that I’m familiar with his work,” Tom was saying. “But I’ll give it a listen. Thanks for the recommendation.”

“No problem!” The brunette was all smiles and hair flipping, and Emme fought the urge to bare her teeth.

Jesus, woman, next you’re going to pee on him. Get a grip.

Emme was saved from herself by a tap on her shoulder.

Jed stood next to her, holding a martini. “The guys told me this was your usual,” he said as he handed it to her.

“Thanks, but you really didn’t need to do that,” Emme said. She smiled when she looked at the garnish.

Just one olive.

She risked a glance at Tom, caught him looking at her drink. She lifted the toothpick, just enough for him to see.

“Stingy with the olives here,” he noted. She could see the little muscles in his face trying to hold back a grin.

The feeling of sharing a joke, just the two of them, melted through her. Nothing felt quite as good as the rush after a great show, and she was still abuzz with that sensation, and the combination of comfort and exhilaration pushed her high.

The sound of Jed’s voice brought her back down to earth. “So, Emme.” He cleared his throat. “Are you … seeing anyone?”

How dare you, she wanted to say.

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